Should I go to rehab / detox experiences?

Hello I'm back, I was doing well on my taper down to about 40% and I guess like the saying goes, people who do well quitting benzos don't post here so we're left with only posts about people with the very worst symptoms. I guess I'm back because of that. I went back up to 65% and it just barely staves off the worst of it.

 

I called my psychiatrist for help and I've been to the ER twice this week because I kept thinking I was dying, that I have brain cancer, because the head pressure, pain, dizziness was an agony like no words can describe. The most recent one left me crawling on the floor and begging the paramedics to restart my heart if I pass out.

 

I'm wondering about if anyone has had experience going to a detox center? The one I called supposedly has treated benzo withdrawals before but they say the detox is 7 to 10 days and after that you're completely drug free. But I'm scared I'm going to come home and go through a host of symptoms again or have protracted withdrawals due to cutting so harshly. Right now I don't feel safe at home though, I live alone and hence I keep calling 911 whenever I have an issue so the benefit of a detox center will be medical supervision for me. But the benefit of being at home is I am in control of the tapering process and I have internet access (for coping tools like music and games as well as staying in school)

They say they give everyone anti seizure medications during detox, I'm wondering if that's valium, but even then a 7 to 10 day detox means you're not even given valium once you leave the facility. Theres the option of staying an additional month or two at quite the expense, I just don't trust that 7 to 10 days is enough. Just cutting at a slow 10% per 2 weeks has left me in shambles! But they said no one has ever died at their center from detox either. I don't know, I just need more information. Has anyone went to a detox? Has it helped or harmed your experience?

Detox can get the drugs out of your system fast.  But it does not mean they can help with the withdrawal.  You will still have to handle the withdrawals from a cold turkey.  Brutal.  I know you are suffering now, but imagine it could be worse with a cold turkey.  The ER cannot do much for withdrawal.  Calling 911 or going to ER is usually not too helpful.  Your struggle is longer term, and ER is there to handle immediate emergencies by medicating or treating.  No one can treat withdrawal, except by giving you more meds.  Anti seizure meds for benzo detox are not valium or more benzos.  Maybe gabapentin.  You would have to ask, though.  It is scary to be alone during withdrawal.  I did it.  I do not know anyone in this city as I had just moved here before covid hit, and now no one could come in anyway.  I was alone in withdrawal right through my sister's passing away.  It is always nicer if there is someone around who cares.  But, many of us are doing it alone.  I think you can, too.  Fear is part of withdrawal.  I honestly do not think going to detox is the answer.  I think you will regret it. 

Detox is just cold-turkey. You can do it for free on your own. The one and only time detox makes sense is flumazenil detox when benzos go paradoxical and you need to flush them out of your system fast.

I was like u and wondered if detox would be best for me. I learned it’s not. Be kind to yourself and be aware you feel bad due to chemical withdrawal.

I was like u and wondered if detox would be best for me. I learned it’s not. Be kind to yourself and be aware you feel bad due to chemical withdrawal.

 

Can you tell me a bit about your experience?

 

Since this post I went and picked up gabapentin that my psych prescribed at the last visit, I assumed this is what they might have given me at the detox center anyway. I've just been feeling so horrible the fear a drug might make it worse or I might have two addictions instead of one have prevented me from taking it. I go to the ER because I thought I had a brain aneurysm or my heart would stop and I needed an operation or CPR

I’ve been to detox once and while it got me off the benzo, it didn’t help withdrawals.  I think those places boast success because they successfully get many people off them but they also don’t see what happens to people once they’re gone.  I’m also pretty sure that most the people who go their to get off benzos are people who have been abusing them pretty badly (and probably have another chemical dependency like alcohol or opioids).  Most those people have been taking them daily for years either. 

I have been unable to find anything that suggests rehab works for getting off benzos (other than one week cold turkey). Rehabs were not designed to help people with physical addictions to doctor prescribed medications used as directed. And, they really do not know or understand benzos and the long term damages.

 

The benefit, I suppose, would be having people around during a really hard time.

 

But, if you decide to go it alone, you really can do it. It's scary. It's hard. But, it is possible.

If you are on xanax, i really think u need to switch to something longer acting and taper from there. I am doing clonazepam and this is going very well so far. Withdrawals are insanely intense, and they get worse each time u go thru it. I don't know if a detox/rehab place could help, i considered it for myself. However, i dont think its necessary- i think u can get better with a switch to clonazepam and taper with lots of healthy self care. I tried gabapentin, made me feel like garbage and did not help with the withdrawals. But thats just me and my sensitive body. Good luck, u got this!!

I like what Healing 64 said, that if you go to treatment you will still have withdrawl to deal with when you get home.  CT sounded so unappealing to me that I decided to tough it out at home as best I could.  I would not recommend gabapentin either since you need to taper off that, you should not CT it either.

 

This process is hard, there is no doubt about that and there is no good way around it.  The saying, "The only way out is through" is more true than I ever imagined.  But it is so worth it!

I did not know any and went to rehab because they said they had experience with getting people off benzos. Mind you this was a very expensive rehab and they gave me a discount and I paid $1025 a day cash money. Their method of getting me off benzos was to take me completely off upon entering and putting me on phenobarbitol for 3 days and checking my vitals every hour. After that I attended classes all day with people that were there for other addictions such as alcohol, cocaine, heroin etc.I was the only one there for benzos.

 

I stayed 21 days and left minus $23,000 dollars and to fend on my own. At least the staff was nice and food top notch and they treated me like a queen but knew nothing about benzos. We had medical staff 24/7 so I guess that was good. I could have stayed forever if I could afford to pay them. It really was a waste of money because I could have cold turkeyed at home for free  .

 

PG

I unfortunately made the awful mistake of going to a detox center. I would not wish that on my worst enemy! It was pure hell. I am 2 months off of clonazapam and still experiencing some withdrawal symptoms. I was prescribed it for 17 years by a doctor who never warned me of the side effects and dependence that clonazapam carries. I am thankful for being off of it, but I wish I would have tapered slowly. It was not worth the pain that I went through alone in a little room with no windows at a detox center. They do not specialize or know much about benzo detox. They were mostly there for people who were coming off of alcohol and opiates. They made me feel unimportant there since I was "only withdrawling from a benzo" They really had no idea about the pain and struggling from coming off of that. I went there thinking it would be safe incase I had a seizure or any other life threatening side effects from withdrawal. and i thought they would help me since they claimed to be a detox facility that handled benzos. Obviously false claims..I learned that the hard way. I wanted to detox fast because I wanted to be freed from clonazapam once and for all but I should have listened to the advice of my new doctor that was tapering me slowly. He told me 7 to 10 days was too fast...I really wish I wasn't so stubborn and in such a rush that I thought detox would be fast and effective. It wasn't because the withdrawals were awful. If I had tapered smartly I know I wouldn't have been in such awful pain. They decided to taper me using Valium which I then experienced withdrawal from on top of my clonazapam because I was sent home with nothing.  Once I was at the detox center for a day they basically made me their prisoner. I felt trapped! They wouldn't allow me to call home or see a counselor for 5 days. They treated me like an insane prisoner when I already felt that way inside of my own body with the clonazapam holding me hostage. They only wanted my money so the 7 to 10 days that I was "supposed" to stay turned into 14-18 days. They wouldn't give me a proper tape down schedule using the Valium, they kept feeding me all of these medications. I finally decided that I can not stay any longer because it was destroying me mentally and I was already going through a tough time with my withdrawals. So I tapered myself off of the Valium by myself. I kept a notebook of times and dosages. I had no idea what I was doing but they weren't tapering me at all and wanted me to stay for a long time so I really felt like there was nothing to lose. Once I refused medication for a full 24 hour I was allowed to call someone to come get me. I was "released". I wish I had just tapered at home with my loving parents but didn't want to burden them while withdrawling. I now know that anything would be better than a detox facility and I would have not burdened my family because they love me and they were horrified by what I went through. Please do not try to detox at a facility unless you absolutely have to. I know how much you want to take your life back and free yourself from benzos but tapering down safely at home is your best bet, in my personal opinion. I hope that you have a safe taper! And you can do this!! Hang in there!! Things will eventually look up for all of us if we never lose hope and keep pushing forward!

I was like u and wondered if detox would be best for me. I learned it’s not. Be kind to yourself and be aware you feel bad due to chemical withdrawal.

 

Can you tell me a bit about your experience?

 

Since this post I went and picked up gabapentin that my psych prescribed at the last visit, I assumed this is what they might have given me at the detox center anyway. I've just been feeling so horrible the fear a drug might make it worse or I might have two addictions instead of one have prevented me from taking it. I go to the ER because I thought I had a brain aneurysm or my heart would stop and I needed an operation or CPR

 

The other comments after mine explain it better than I could’ve. I did want to mention though I’ve been taking gabapentin for years and feel dependent now. They do help my mood and prob helped my W/D not be worse, but I’ve been worrying about when I have to taper this.

 

Take the gabapentin definitely as prescribed during your taper, as it’ll probably help. My doc tells me over and over it’s a very safe drug and not to worry about the dependence so maybe I’m just paranoid, and just be mindful if you take them for awhile you can’t CT them

I used gabapentin and it’s just another form of hell to come off of horrible taper just like with benzos

I took gabapentin for 1 year to assist withdrawals.  I had no issues stopping it.  I tapered from 300 to 0 dose in 6 weeks.  I did this 1 month after I completed my benzo taper.  300 mgs is a relatively low dose, so maybe that is why it was not difficult.  High doses can be challenging.  They do not cross the blood brain barrier, so the experience is not the same as benzos.  There is always someone who struggled, though.  Anytime considering adding a med to aid in withdrawal, do the research and proceed with full awareness.

I unfortunately made the awful mistake of going to a detox center. I would not wish that on my worst enemy! It was pure hell. I am 2 months off of clonazapam and still experiencing some withdrawal symptoms. I was prescribed it for 17 years by a doctor who never warned me of the side effects and dependence that clonazapam carries. I am thankful for being off of it, but I wish I would have tapered slowly. It was not worth the pain that I went through alone in a little room with no windows at a detox center. They do not specialize or know much about benzo detox. They were mostly there for people who were coming off of alcohol and opiates. They made me feel unimportant there since I was "only withdrawling from a benzo" They really had no idea about the pain and struggling from coming off of that. I went there thinking it would be safe incase I had a seizure or any other life threatening side effects from withdrawal. and i thought they would help me since they claimed to be a detox facility that handled benzos. Obviously false claims..I learned that the hard way. I wanted to detox fast because I wanted to be freed from clonazapam once and for all but I should have listened to the advice of my new doctor that was tapering me slowly. He told me 7 to 10 days was too fast...I really wish I wasn't so stubborn and in such a rush that I thought detox would be fast and effective. It wasn't because the withdrawals were awful. If I had tapered smartly I know I wouldn't have been in such awful pain. They decided to taper me using Valium which I then experienced withdrawal from on top of my clonazapam because I was sent home with nothing.  Once I was at the detox center for a day they basically made me their prisoner. I felt trapped! They wouldn't allow me to call home or see a counselor for 5 days. They treated me like an insane prisoner when I already felt that way inside of my own body with the clonazapam holding me hostage. They only wanted my money so the 7 to 10 days that I was "supposed" to stay turned into 14-18 days. They wouldn't give me a proper tape down schedule using the Valium, they kept feeding me all of these medications. I finally decided that I can not stay any longer because it was destroying me mentally and I was already going through a tough time with my withdrawals. So I tapered myself off of the Valium by myself. I kept a notebook of times and dosages. I had no idea what I was doing but they weren't tapering me at all and wanted me to stay for a long time so I really felt like there was nothing to lose. Once I refused medication for a full 24 hour I was allowed to call someone to come get me. I was "released". I wish I had just tapered at home with my loving parents but didn't want to burden them while withdrawling. I now know that anything would be better than a detox facility and I would have not burdened my family because they love me and they were horrified by what I went through. Please do not try to detox at a facility unless you absolutely have to. I know how much you want to take your life back and free yourself from benzos but tapering down safely at home is your best bet, in my personal opinion. I hope that you have a safe taper! And you can do this!! Hang in there!! Things will eventually look up for all of us if we never lose hope and keep pushing forward!

 

Thank you for this post this is exactly what I fear about going to rehab

Just now I had a huge wave of dizziness and made me call a different hospital (that does accept my insurance) in case I went inpatient. I'm having trouble even just getting out of bed due to the crushing dizziness

 

I was strongly considering rehab because all the doctors I've seen the psych, the pcp, er doctors, neurologists, no one believes it is benzo withdrawals I'm going through. Luckily they don't think it's a brain tumor either. I just feel extremely awful and thought specialists at a rehab facility will know how to treat this 

I unfortunately made the awful mistake of going to a detox center. I would not wish that on my worst enemy! It was pure hell. I am 2 months off of clonazapam and still experiencing some withdrawal symptoms. I was prescribed it for 17 years by a doctor who never warned me of the side effects and dependence that clonazapam carries. I am thankful for being off of it, but I wish I would have tapered slowly. It was not worth the pain that I went through alone in a little room with no windows at a detox center. They do not specialize or know much about benzo detox. They were mostly there for people who were coming off of alcohol and opiates. They made me feel unimportant there since I was "only withdrawling from a benzo" They really had no idea about the pain and struggling from coming off of that. I went there thinking it would be safe incase I had a seizure or any other life threatening side effects from withdrawal. and i thought they would help me since they claimed to be a detox facility that handled benzos. Obviously false claims..I learned that the hard way. I wanted to detox fast because I wanted to be freed from clonazapam once and for all but I should have listened to the advice of my new doctor that was tapering me slowly. He told me 7 to 10 days was too fast...I really wish I wasn't so stubborn and in such a rush that I thought detox would be fast and effective. It wasn't because the withdrawals were awful. If I had tapered smartly I know I wouldn't have been in such awful pain. They decided to taper me using Valium which I then experienced withdrawal from on top of my clonazapam because I was sent home with nothing.  Once I was at the detox center for a day they basically made me their prisoner. I felt trapped! They wouldn't allow me to call home or see a counselor for 5 days. They treated me like an insane prisoner when I already felt that way inside of my own body with the clonazapam holding me hostage. They only wanted my money so the 7 to 10 days that I was "supposed" to stay turned into 14-18 days. They wouldn't give me a proper tape down schedule using the Valium, they kept feeding me all of these medications. I finally decided that I can not stay any longer because it was destroying me mentally and I was already going through a tough time with my withdrawals. So I tapered myself off of the Valium by myself. I kept a notebook of times and dosages. I had no idea what I was doing but they weren't tapering me at all and wanted me to stay for a long time so I really felt like there was nothing to lose. Once I refused medication for a full 24 hour I was allowed to call someone to come get me. I was "released". I wish I had just tapered at home with my loving parents but didn't want to burden them while withdrawling. I now know that anything would be better than a detox facility and I would have not burdened my family because they love me and they were horrified by what I went through. Please do not try to detox at a facility unless you absolutely have to. I know how much you want to take your life back and free yourself from benzos but tapering down safely at home is your best bet, in my personal opinion. I hope that you have a safe taper! And you can do this!! Hang in there!! Things will eventually look up for all of us if we never lose hope and keep pushing forward!

 

Thank you for this post this is exactly what I fear about going to rehab

Just now I had a huge wave of dizziness and made me call a different hospital (that does accept my insurance) in case I went inpatient. I'm having trouble even just getting out of bed due to the crushing dizziness

 

I was strongly considering rehab because all the doctors I've seen the psych, the pcp, er doctors, neurologists, no one believes it is benzo withdrawals I'm going through. Luckily they don't think it's a brain tumor either. I just feel extremely awful and thought specialists at a rehab facility will know how to treat this 

 

Sadly, I don’t think the “specialists” at rehab clinics are very well-versed with bad benzo withdrawal.  I mentioned this in a previous post, but all they see is what happens at rehab and not the aftermath.  I was actually feeling pretty decent when I was in detox, and then started going into initial withdrawal the day I left.  10 days after leaving is when I felt like I was really thrust into acute. 

 

I also think most people who end up in detox for benzos aren’t people who have been taking them daily and medically prescribed for years which is where the real damage is done.  I’m willing to guess that the majority of people there for benzos also have issue with either alcohol or opioids.  It’s usually people that have been abusing them badly along with other stuff. 

 

I talked to a therapist with 40 years experience in drug/alcohol counseling and he was in disbelief when I told him of my symptoms 5 months after getting off them (the first time).  My symptoms probably weren’t that extreme compared to many people on this board. 

 

Benzos simply don’t get as much attention because people aren’t dying from them left and right.  If they are, it’s usually in combination with alcohol/opioids and a result of abuse. 

If your not convinced yet, bearing in mind that some* people will be well served by some* detoxes, perhaps read some of our old threads from years ago..

They used to be a pretty regular topic, -not sure whats changed..??

 

From my experience, one word.. -Evil..!!

 

*= I would hate to talk someone that really needed a detox and its associated “safety/supervision” out of it.. -Rare that that might be around here..